The Elements
by Whackedgourd
Summary: We've forgotten some of the more Whimsical parst of childhood. Oh, the Holidays are very well and good to remember, along with Jack Frost, the Sandman, and the Tooth Fairy. But what about four leaf Clovers? Or Wishing Stars? The Four Winds? Or even Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter? Rating has gone up.
1. Lore

The Guardians of Childhood represent the more interesting holidays and instances of childhood itself. The magic of Christmas and the surprise of Easter. The hope of a snow day in winter or a sweet dream at night. Even the proof of waning childhood. The last lost tooth before a child can be considered fully grown, or the first loose tooth to prove that a child has grown from unknowing toddler hood. Even seeing the phases of the moon become something as familiar as the face of a wise and kind elder. All of these represent the most of childhood, the most fun to be had in life. These are the things we think about most growing up.

But there are more than these to remember fondly. The first snow does not come from Jack Frost. It comes from the North and the West winds driving the cold down from the North Pole. Winter is an old man who commands the formidable winds of the North and West. Without Old Man Winter, Jack would still be making little frost flowers on window panes and little puddles of water.

Among those to remember is Spring, as sweet as honey and as needed by the Easter Bunny, for she brings the warm East and South winds along with Rain storms to wash away the final gloom of Winter. Without her, Easter would be a cold, soggy affair and the sweets would freeze in the cold of the last snows. The Easter Bunny can not bring Easter if Spring hasn't already come.

The first star you see at night, is the Wishing Star. It's fallen out of use lately, and the Sandman is a little disappointed. Wishing on a star is one of the quickest ways to get a good dream, as stars in general are very talkative. All stars can grant some kind of wish, but only a few true believers have found the right star for their wishes. It was their stories and the Sandman, who spread the legend of the Wishing Stars. The Tooth Fairy also laments the loss of the Wishing Star. They do make for easy navigation for they shine brightest when a child has wished to see the Tooth Fairy, or one of the other Guardians. They are lovely little beacons of hope, the Wishing Stars.

Also, not to be forgotten, are the purely whimsical, four leaf clovers. These plants behave much like the stars, only they have less intelligence, but more cleverness. Why else can a person find perhaps one four leaf clover in their life. A clover spans three seasons, Spring, Summer and Autumn. But these little plants can not move on their own. Spring delivers only a handful of their seeds around the world, making sure only a few people a year can find one of these fetching little plants.

These beings that we have put to the wayside, have not forgotten us. They know that sooner or later, they will be needed, and that their representatives will be chosen by the Man in the Moon and Mother Nature. The Elements and the Wishfuls have waited for us long enough. Their time is coming, and they want it to be now.


	2. First Star

The Wishing Star.

_Star Light, Star Bright_

_First Star I see Tonight_

_I Wish I May_

_I Wish I Might_

_Have the Wish_

_I Wish Tonight_

Star Light and Star Bright are the two stars that led Peter Pan to Neverland. First Star is the very first star to arrive after the sun goes down and she is rather proud of her personal story. Some believe her to be a planet, or the North Star. But she is the only star to be able to shine brightly enough to beat out the last lingering rays of sunlight. Besides, the North Star is stuck up about his sharing the name North with a Guardian, and being the navigation go to star for sailors since the stone age.

First Star sat in her little parlour, waiting for MiM. He had finally agreed to see her as a representative of the Sky at Night. She was going to request the Stars own Guardian, or at least a physical manifestation carried by the night time Guardians. A little star shine in a pendant was very useful. It had once saved several travellers from an enchanted forest. For a Guardian to use it, the star the pendant was linked to, would shine that much brighter. Betelgeuse wanted none other than North himself to carry his pendant. North Star however, had a differing and loud, opinion. First Star rose when MiM shone in through the large window.

"How can I help you, First Star?" MiM asked in his kind mental voice. Of course this was purely for show, as any celestial being could talk to each other, save for Sol. She was relegated to Day and near unending loneliness, if MiM didn't visit every so often, causing eclipses and letting all the Stars see the humans during the day.

"The Wishing Stars want a Guardian. We believe we have been more than patient." First said quietly, only comets spoke above a soft tone. "It is time your promise was brought to fruition. Betelgeuse can wait no longer. He feels his time is coming to a close."

"Who do you have in mind?" MiM asked pleasantly, by no means put out. The Stars were doing all the work for him, in order to get their own recognition..

"Guardian North will take Betel. Until he is no more. Then North Star will be his companion. Jack Frost shall carry with him Star Light, they would make a good team. Though it causes me no end of fear for what they will get up to. Star Bright would help Tooth Fairy, lighting her way through the night and making it easier to find the humans' teeth. I myself with be at Sandman's side. He and I are both the first of our kind." First Star said sweetly, and seemed to glow just a little brighter. MiM chuckled and nodded his head.

"It shall be done. But, what of the Easter Bunny?" MiM asked curiously, First Star made a helpless shrug.

"He has no Wish. The others all Wish to their hearts' content. But he makes no Wish. We can not help him, if he refuses to set a goal or an achievement." First Star said sadly. "Also, no Star wants to help him without first knowing what he wants most. Our job is nothing short of Hope. We can't help someone who has no Hope within him."

"I see. I shall do what I can to make Hope grow within the Easter Bunny." MiM said. This was troubling news. A Guardian without the basic Hope was dangerous to the unity of the whole. He was still effective at his job, still fervently believed in by children the world over, and still looked on with friendship by the rest of the Guardians and the lesser Proxies. Well, most of the Guardians. Jack Frost and Bunnymund seemed to have more of a rivalry than a friendship going on. MiM took his leave of First Star, promising to distribute the pendants among his top Guardians. First Star sat in her parlour and smiled to herself. He Stars did have meanings written in them. Those meanings were often misinterpreted. End of the world before Christmas, really.


	3. Well Met By Moonlight

A little girl sat on her bed, the evening before Easter. She was holding her very first lost tooth in her hand. With a giggle, she stuck it under her pillow and lay down to wait for the Tooth Fairy. She never saw the Tooth Fairy, but for years she would swear that the Easter Bunny of all people took her tooth and left her a brightly coloured egg instead. She would go so far as to claim that he spoke like the crocodile hunter and had laughed about 'Getting one over the Tooth Fairy.' When asked how the Easter Bunny didn't know she was awake, the little girl would say she was trying not to give herself away. She was a very grown up five year old, after all.

Twenty years later.

Alright, Chrissy. It's bed time." said Lily, as she pulled back the blankets on Chrissy's bed. The little girl, no more than six, hopped into bed and shoved something under her pillow. "Was that your tooth?" Lily asked, the little girl grinned, displaying a gap filled line of tiny white teeth.

"Yeth. I can't talk right, no more." Chrissy said, with an adorable lisp. Lily snorted mirthfully and sat down with Chrissy.

"Did I ever tell you how I saw the Easter Bunny?" Lily asked in a computational whisper. Chrissy's eyes went wide. "Well, when I lost my first tooth, I did everything I could to keep it safe. I lost it at school, so I had to bring it home. My kindergarten teacher told me the Tooth Fairy wasn't real. That's crazy. Of course she's real, how else do we get money for a little tooth? Anyway, I was determined to stay up all night to see the Tooth Fairy and ask her for a kitten instead of a quarter. I waited and waited and then, just before I was going to fall asleep, I heard a big bang on my window. I peeked only a little bit, and guess who I saw?" Lily asked with a bright grin.

"The Toof Fairy?" Chrissy asked hopefully.

"No, it was Easter, so I got to see the Easter Bunny. He was big and gray. And you know what he did?" Lily broke off, playing at being angry. "He took my tooth! And he left me a glass egg, instead of a quarter, or a kitten. But I saw the Easter Bunny." Lily said proudly.

"Will I get to see him too?" Chrissy asked.

"It's too early for him to be out. It's not even Christmas. Which is also your birthday. I have to get you something still." Lily said, musing to herself, as she went to the door and turned the light off.

"Will you sleep with me? I'm scared of the dark." Chrissy whispered fearfully.

"This is the last time I'll ever sleep with you. You aren't a baby anymore. That tooth is proof. I'll stay till you fall asleep." Lily said, sitting down next to Chrissy's bed.

Lily didn't realize when she dropped off to sleep, but she heard a thump that woke her up past midnight. She had years of honed instinct not to jump or twitch for fear of waking one of her nieces or nephews who had snuck into bed with her. Twelve years of ingrained habits paid off. The two unusual people in Chrissy's room were arguing, loudly. A third joined, but the noise didn't get louder. Lily found Chrissy's hard plastic tee ball bat and rose slowly to her feet, with it poised to swing. The figures finally noticed that they were being noticed.

"Who, and what, are you, and why are you here?" Lily demanded. The beings, a large human man, a small golden man, and what looked like a kangaroo, looked at her in surprise.

"You can see us?" asked the human male in a Russian accent.

"'Course I can see you! You're standing in my niece's room, with a hand puppet and a coyote. Did you think you were invisible?" Lily demanded. "I gotta tell ya, your kind of crazy, it ain't invisible."

"I am nyet crazy!" said the Russian man indignantly, he stepped forward, only to have the tee ball bat whistle past his nose twice.

"Watch it Sputnik. I went through six years of little league and more of girls hockey. I can shatter a water melon with this little toy bat." Lily threatened darkly. "Here's what's going to happen. You, your glowing marionette and your jackal are going to leave. You do not come back. I ever see…"

"Now hang on a tick! Coyote I can get! But jackal? Are you blind? I'm a bunny!" the large gray bunny protested loudly and in a voice that was vaguely familiar.

"And I'm a hippopotamus. Get out!" Lily snapped back, the large rabbit stepped forward, ready to argue his case when Chrissy sat up in bed.

"Aunt Lily! It's the Easter Bunny!" Chrissy said ecstatically. Three things seemed to happen at once. The Easter Bunny stepped towards Chrissy, perhaps thinking he could get her to go back to sleep, the little glowing man sent sand at Chrissy, and Lily swung her bat as hard as she could, hitting the Easter Bunny and scaring the Sandman into hiding behind North. Time slowed down as the Easter Bunny made a few sounds and then seemed to melt to the floor, rather than just fall.

"Aunt Lily! You killed the Easter Bunny!" Chrissy gasped, looking over the edge of her bed. "Oh no wait. His foot's all kicking, like a doggy when his back gets scratched."

"So much for lucky rabbits' feet, huh?" Lily said with a smirk. "I told you I could smash a watermelon. Now you have proof." she said to North.

"He is just stunned. He will be fine." North said to the Sandman. "It is unusual for adult to see us. How is it that you can?" North demanded, turning to Lily as Sandman and Chrissy sat at Bunnymund's side.

"Aunt Lily saw the Easter Bunny when she was little." Chrissy said, getting up and going to her desk. She pulled out a box of her markers and Sandman grinned brightly. They spent a few minutes drawing on Bunnymund.

"You saw Bunny?" North demanded.

"When I was five." Lily said, North held out his hand, only to be threatened with the bat again. "Uh uh. Hands to yourself buster."

"I am Nicolas St. North. You would know me as Santa Claus. But you may call me North. My comrades are Sandman, and Bunnymund. Who you have knocked silly." North said with a chuckle. Lily's eyes went wide, she had realized only moments ago, that no one was coming after the ruckus had happened, so she may as well have hit air. By all rights, her sister and brother in law should have come running with his hunting rifle.

"Santa Claus? The Sandman? And the Easter Bunny? You are crazy." Lily said.

"Then explain why only child and you see and hear us. No one else." North snapped losing his patience.

"But, but. None of you are really, real. You're all just fairy tales. Stories to make children feel better. Or just a way to get them to behave around the holidays." Lily said, shaking her head in disbelief.

"We are real. You see us here in front of you." North said, spreading his arms out.

"You've got to be kidding." Lily dead panned, North groaned and rolled his eyes.

"What's going on? What's taking you so long? Are you three competing again? We have to get all the teeth tonight!" a woman dressed in feathers flew in through the window and hovered in front of North.

"We have a problem. Girl woke up and so did lady. Both have seen us." North explained. "Woman knocked Bunny silly with toy bat." he added with a wicked grin. Toothiana looked at the now groaning bunny and how colourful his face was. Sandman and Chrissy were over playing with her dolls and horses. Sandman looked up and started, then sent dream sand at Chrissy. She fell asleep, just as Bunnymund sat up and felt his chin.

"What do we do with her? No adult has ever seen us before. None of them believe in us." Toothiana asked worriedly.

"We take her to MiM. He will know what to do." North said determinedly. "Sandy, if you would." Sandman nodded and knocked Lily out with another strand of sleep sand. North caught Lily and held her, while Bunnymund and Sandman put Chrissy in her bed. Toothiana left a quarter for the tooth and then they were gone, through one of Norths' snow globes.


	4. Change

Lily groaned as she came to. Forced sleep always gave her a head ache. She sat up and realized that she was in the back of a sleigh.

"Ah! You are awake!" North said brightly, he was guiding the sleigh, which was pulled by a large draft horse. North saw her looking and grinned. "Too close to Christmas to use reindeer. Horse is best for quick run." he said happily.

"A quick run to kidnap me?" Lily demanded shrilly.

"We didn't kidnap you." Bunnymund.

"You knocked me out, knocked out the witness, and carried me out without permission. Please, tell me your definition of kidnap?!" snapped Lily, she and Bunnymund glared at each other for a moment, before she shook her head. "I've been kidnapped by Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy. I never thought I'd know the exact date I went crazy. But a few weeks before Christmas is as good as any." Lily moaned to herself and slumped in her seat. She didn't respond to anyone until North almost carried her into the observatory where the Man in the Moon was easiest to see.

I see you've brought a new person. Yet this one is not a child."

Mim said with a touch of humour in his tone.

"She can see us. How is that possible?" North asked.

"Some adults retain their belief, even though they know that all of the Guardians do not exist. Not to them at least."

MiM said cutting off Bunnymunds protests.

"I can hear you. But you're the moon, the moon can't talk." Lily said, eyes wide. Panic was beginning to set in.

"Indeed. You are one of the few adults, one who continues to believe, even though you have grown up."

MiM said, amused. "_Seeing is believing for most adults. But for children and the few adults, believing isn't always seeing. It's what keeps children innocent."_ MiM said.

"That sounds like a bad movie quote." Lily dead panned. "So what are you going to do to me? I've already been kidnapped."

"As it stands, there are several… apprenticeships open. Spring being the most needful at the moment. Mother Nature requires a handful of helpers. Representatives if you will."

MiM said, looking down on his assembled guardians serenely. _"Fertility is at the top of the list. You would have to undergo certain changes. Nothing drastic or demeaning."_ he added.

"What about my life back home? My family, and my job? What am I going to do about those?" Lily asked, standing up. "My family will worry about me."

"The other Guardians will take care of that, all you have to do is accept the job. Everything else will be beyond your immediate concern."

MiM replied calmly. Lily looked around at the others, Sandman gave her two thumbs up and a grin, North nodded, Toothiana fluttered higher and smiled. Bunnymund scowled and crossed his arms.

"Fine. I'll try it for a little while." Lily said with a sigh. MiM shone down on her, his light surrounding her and obscuring her from view for a few moments. The light faded and Toothiana couldn't stop a giggle from escaping her.

"What's going on? Why are you looking at me like that?" Lily asked suspiciously, and turned a dark look on Bunnymund, who had made a strangled sound and was now glaring up at MiM. Then she caught sight of her hand. "You said there wasn't any drastic changes!" she shrieked up at the moon, who seemed to be rushing away from the North Pole. Lily stared at her hands for a few moments. It was very noticeable when Jack Frost finally made his entrance.

"What? We have another kangaroo?!" Jack asked, mock surprised, Lily flung the firs thing she could lay hands on, at his head. The poor elf staggered around for a moment, then collapsed. Jack rubbed the sore spot on his head, confused. "So what is going on? MiM told me to get here as soon as I could, and then I'm being pelted with elves." he said, put out at his reception.

"She's going through some changes." Toothiana said in a whisper. "MiM didn't even warn her about the job requirements, and now she's a bunny, like Bunnymund." she said, giggling again, Jack smirked and turned to Bunnymund.

"Looks like the Warren won't be so empty anymore, huh?" Jack asked with a wicked grin. North frowned at Jack disapprovingly.

"Is this all some big joke to you?" Lily asked darkly. "I was abducted, and forced into this situation. I can't go home looking like this and all you can do is laugh."

"I was left alone for three hundred years. This is a cake walk in comparison." Jack said, humour vanishing. "My family had to bury me."

"Mine won't get that closure. They don't know what has happened to me. The last person to see me is five years old and dreams unicorns. They won't believe her when she tells them Santa Freaking Claus and the damned Easter Bunny kidnapped me. They'll get search parties going, thinking I had last minute Christmas shopping to do and left in the dead of night. They'll think I was murdered or kidnapped and trafficked to somewhere no one speaks a word of English. They won't ever know what happened to me." Lily ranted herself down to a whisper. "And I'll have to watch them grow old and die, knowing that I could've saved them the heart ache." Lily went to sit down and wound up tripping over her own two rabbit feet. Jack laughed and got a second object to the head, this time an empty mug. Bunnymund helped Lily up.

"It's easy. You walk on the tips of your feet, not the whole length. That's for sitting or resting up." Bunnymund said kindly enough, even though he still felt sore along his jaw from when she had hit him. Lily stayed grimly quiet as she carefully walked up a short flight of stairs, unassisted. She tripped over the top stare, and fell to the floor again.

"I hate this already." Lily muttered and got up to keep going.

"I shall show you to guest room. You rest and feel better tomorrow." North said, taking Lily's arm and leading her to the guest wing. He left her in the room and went back to the other guardians. Lily shut the door and sat on the bed. She felt very sorry for herself and even worse for her close knit family. It was the first time since childhood, that she cried herself to sleep.

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So, a fourth chapter. As everyone knows, reviews, both good and bad, are welcomed by serious authors. So, please feel free to leave one.


	5. Learning on the Bunny Trail

Lily woke up later that night, just before dawn. She got out of the huge, comfortable bed, and went over to the large window. She opened it and looked out, briefly considering jumping out and running away from all the crazy her life had gotten. Lily sighed and shook her head, she was too sensible and cared far too much about living, to go running off across the snow landscape alone and unprepared. Besides, she was fairly sure she'd freeze to death ten minutes out, and she was rather fond of the feeling 'warm'. Lily sat down on the window seat and thought about what to do. Going back to the nice warm bed was looking like a good idea. She did just that, after tripping on her feet again and falling onto the edge of the bed first.

The next morning, things didn't start off too smoothly. First, Lily discovered that rabbits didn't like showers, something she had enjoyed up until the day before. She wound up taking a bath and drying her new fur with a towel. She also discovered that her fur curled when brushed to avoid matting. Next was going down stairs without falling, she managed to grab the banister to keep from falling all the way down the stairs. After she got to the ground floor. What shocked the other Guardians, was when she sat down to eat and took eggs, bacon, and hash browns. Bunnymund had a look of absolute horror on his face when Lily went to take a bite of egg.

"What are you doing? Aren't you a vegetarian?" Jack and Toothiana both spoke at the same time.

"Am I?" Lily asked blankly, then looked at her fork for a moment. She shrugged and ate the eggs. As she considered, North was grinning at Bunnymund, who looked absolutely disgusted now. "Eh. Not bad. They need salt, and cheese." She said to general hilarity.

She continued on with her bacon. That was when the herbivore constitution kicked in and made the bacon taste odd to her.

"Okay, so meat is out of the question. Which is sad, since bacon makes everything better." Lily said, mournfully. She had enjoyed being able to eat meat. The hash browns or draniki as North called them were delicious, even beyond the eggs.

Soon breakfast was over and North called Lily and Bunnymund into his private study. It was time to discuss what to do with Lily.

"She must go to the Warren with you, Bunny. No other place for her until MiM and Mother Nature decide." North said in a tone that didn't invite discussion. Bunnymund groaned.

"Look, mate, she won't be happy at the Warren. It's not your work shop." Bunnymund said

"Is also not good for girl bunny. Too cold and no where for her to go." North said, making Bunnymund glower at him. "We ask girl bunny. Girl, where would you like to stay? In freezing cold, barren, snowy, workshop with bad elves. Or in cozy, spring time warren with nice plants?" North asked Lily, who looked up guiltily from his naughty list.

"Sure, stack the deck." Bunnymund grumbled. "You get to pick where you live. Here, in Santa's work shop where the magic happens."

"Or, in Easter Bunny Warren where he needs Spring anyway." North said quickly. "Also, no stairs or sleigh for tripping over." he added with a grin.

"I suppose the Warren." Lily said uncertainly, Bunnymund winced and got a glare. "Well, who else is going to teach me how to be a giant rabbit?" Lily demanded hotly.

"Fine." Bunnymund said grudgingly. "We're leaving in a short while. Be ready to go when I say." he grumbled and left the study. North and Lily looked at each other.

"What am I going to do? I'm worried about my family and I don't know what's going to happen. Spring isn't for a few months. How am I going to learn what I need to know, if no one else knows what I need to know?" Lily asked plaintively.

"You will do as we all did. You will learn on the job. Mother Nature is not strict task master. She is kind and gentle." North said kindly. "Now, go. Bunny will not wait forever." Lily left the study and hunted down Bunnymund.

She found him putting together a package of vegetables and chocolates.

"Do you always raid Santa's larder when you come?" Lily asked dryly.

"I'm running low on stores and I always take a few samples back to check against my own chocolate recipes. Christmas candy isn't as good as Easter candy for a reason." Bunnymund explained as he shoved some chocolate santas' on a stick into his bag. Lily snagged one.

"These have always been my favourite. And the big Mr. Munchy chocolate rabbits. We still get those at Easter. Those are the best." Lily said taking a bite of the candy santa.

"Come on. It's time we got going." Bunnymund said. "Get ya to the Warren and get settled in." he added and left the room, with Lily trailing behind him.

Like others say: Reviews are love.


	6. Welcome to the Warren

"So, mister Easter Bunny. How do you propose we get to this Warren of yours?" Lily asked, having to shout over the wind. "Are we going to fly on a giant flower? Or is an egg going to pop out of the ground and transport us to your home?" she added, then went quiet when Bunnymund stomped the ground and a hole opened at his feet.

"We go down the rabbit hole." Bunnymund said, gloating at the look of surprise on Lily's face, she recovered and arched an eyebrow at Bunnymund. "After you." Bunnymund said with a grin as Lily looked into the hole. Bunnymund rolled his eyes and unceremoniously shoved Lily into the hole in the ground. Lily yelped as she rolled head over heels, and fluffy little bunny tail, down through the hole and landed sprawled on her belly in what appeared to be the largest, brightest, underground cavern she had ever seen, outside a geology book. Bunnymund thumped down beside her and chuckled at her uncoordinated attempt to get to her feet. Lily glared at him, promptly tripping herself and fell at his feet, making Bunnymund laugh even harder.

"Right, right. Enough of that. Get your front feet under your chest and stretch out before trying to put your back paws in order. Alright, now, one foot at a time and then stand up." Bunnymund said, still trying to quell the laughing fit he had at Lily's expense.

"Was there a reason Mother Nature wanted a rabbit as a rep?" Lily asked, standing on her own.

"Rabbits are good symbols." Bunnymund said with a shrug and headed off down a path.

"Symbols of what?" Lily asked suspiciously as she followed him.

"What's your job?" Bunnymund asked in return.

"The rep of a lesser part of Spring. Fertility, I suppose. Rabbits are the best symbol of Fertility aren't they?" Lily groaned, as she got both the pun and her job.

"What did you think it meant?" Bunnymund asked, with a wry grin.

"I didn't think of anything. I was suddenly thrown into Santa's workshop and the moon talked to me. And it turned me into a giant rabbit. So you see, I've had a lot of things on my mind. And all of them more pressing than my new job." Lily explained waving her paws dramatically. "Just what is my job description?"

"How should I know? I'm the Easter Bunny, not one of Mother Nature's little errand boys." Bunnymund said, wrinkling his nose in disgust. Lily couldn't help but giggle at how adorable the six foot warrior rabbit looked when he did that. "What?" Bunnymund asked warily.

"You just reminded me of a childrens song." Lily said with an alarming grin.

"Which one?" Bunnymund asked, he was well acquainted with all the rabbit songs, and some he liked less than others. Peter Cottontail was his least favourite. Lily took a deep breath and began to sing:

"Little Bunny Foo Foo went hopping through the forest! Scooping up the Field mice and bopping them on the head!" Lily sang loudly, making Bunnymund groan loudly and stomp away, which made Lily stop singing only to laugh. "Aww, does the ickle bunny not like being called Foo Foo?" Lily called after him, still laughing. When she realized that he was getting further away, Lily had a momentary flash of panic and went after him as quickly as she could.

She managed to trip again and go rolling down the slight incline, she kept rolling right past Bunnymund who only stopped to watch how far she would go. Lily finally came to a stop near a circle of stone eggs. She was near it only because one of the stone eggs had stopped her forward momentum. Lily was looking up at her feet, quite dizzy and disoriented from her head long charge and the sudden, painful, stop. Bunnymund sighed, there was a point when clumsiness became pathetic and Lily had just reached that point. Toppling like a baby into the circle and then being unable to get up by herself.

Bunnymund shook his head. Lily had to be trained and she only had a few months to get the basics down. If they only knew what was expected of her, then the others could help as well. Bunnymund helped Lily to her feet and then led her down to the meadow where the flowers and first eggs were. The meadow should at least cheer her up.

* * *

It's been said that those who can not do, teach. Those who can not teach, criticize. And those who can not criticize constructively, use sarcasm and complaints, and hide behind the Guest name. If you don't like what I write, then you do not need to leave a review. I don't thrive on popularity and I don't write for other people exclusively. I write for myself, for my own enjoyment, simply because I can. I do like the reviews, don't get me wrong. Having someone acknowledge that my writing makes them happy, also makes me happy.

But For someone to complain about 'Kangaroos' and TWO RABBITS' in a budding fandom, there's going to be a lot of that. Especially with the premiere of a Furry in a well loved movie. Not to mention the Australian voice actor Hugh Jackman. That man is one of my favourite actors, right up there with Patrick Stewart, and Will Smith. Of course I'm going to glom onto anything one of them does. The readers do too, hence the success of Fanfiction.

I don't want any hate reviews, or negative reviews. Constructive criticism is fine. Just be polite, not condescending, when you write a review. Not just to me, that would be selfish. Every author likes a good review, whether it's critical or just a 'Squee! Luv it!' review.


	7. Not Seeing Eye to Eye

A week after Christmas, North came to check on Bunnymund and Lily. He didn't find them together. Bunnymund was down in his meadow painting eggs, while Lily was up in the catacombs reading the Pookas' books. North watched Bunnymund chase down an egg, almost angrily, which surprised North.

"Bunny?" North called cheerfully. "What is wrong?"

"She's driving me crazy, mate. I can't concentrate on the eggs with her here." Bunnymund said, tossing a ruined egg over his shoulder. "And she can't paint worth beans. What possible use could I have with her?"

"Did she tell you she could paint?" North asked, Bunnymund shook his head.

"All Pookas can paint, North." Bunnymund pointed out dryly.

"But she is not Pooka. Not on inside. Perhaps it is something you are forgetting when you look at her?" North suggested, deliberately avoiding the whole use topic for his own continued good health.

"I… Probably. Seeing another Pooka after so long, I suppose I let the sight go more than the person." Bunnymund admitted grudgingly. He grabbed the tossed egg and repainted it quickly. "But that doesn't mean she's helpful. Mother Nature hasn't contacted her for training yet and it's beginning to wear on both of us. Being cooped up together."

"You both come to the Pole. I keep rooms for both of you." North said magnanimously. He didn't say anything about the rooms being next to each other, or being connected as a suite.

"Nah, mate I'm good here. Take her up to the pole. We need time apart. Please?" Bunnymund was too proud to beg, but he came very close. "One of us is going to try to kill the other soon. And it may just be me, if she starts reading me facts from the old medical books again." Bunnymund groaned and slumped against a tree.

They walked to the high plaza and stood there talking for a few minutes, while an egg went to fetch Lily. Then another and another. Bunnymund sent half a dozen eggs to get Lily and none of them returned. North and he had to hunt up Lily on their own. Of course it took only a moment since Bunnymund knew she was still in the old archives. A quick hop down a tunnel and he and North were in the archives as well.

"There you are! I've sent egg after egg to get you." Bunnymund snapped, Lily looked up from her latest book, startled.

"Is that what they're here for? I thought they were just looking for attention, or something." Lily said, looking down at the swarm of eggs in bemusement.

"Can't you get anything right? They clearly have a message for you." Bunnymund demanded, making Lily glower at him.

"They'd better be love notes, 'cause otherwise I don't care and I'm not going to just hop to when someone calls." Lily growled at Bunnymund, who bristled, while his ears went pink at the implication of love notes. "I know we've been getting on each others nerves a lot. But you expecting me to blindly do as you say, isn't going to happen."

"North has offered to take you to the Pole for a week or so. Maybe you'll get your proper job description there." Bunnymund said, keeping his temper in check. He wasn't accustomed to being disobeyed. Lily looked at North hopefully.

"Do you think, you could take me to see my family? It's been weeks since I came." Lily pleaded, standing and walking over to North.

"Well, they may not see you. You are one of us now. And you have no believers yet." North said as gently as he could.

"I just want to see them. Just to make sure they're doing alright. Please?" Lily begged.

"You come to Pole and we shall see. Perhaps, after a rest away from Warren, we go see family." North conceded, Lily had to accept that much and gathered a few books.

"Whoa, what do you think you're doing? Those books stay here." Bunnymund said, grabbing the few Lily held.

"What else am I supposed to read up on? Human biology? The human reproductive system? In case you hadn't noticed, I was human and have a very in depth education on that subject. I'm a giant rabbit now. This is what I need to learn. So I'm taking these books to read, when I'm not visiting with North or the other Guardians." Lily said, rather high handed in her assumption.

"But they belong here." Bunnymund said simply. "You go, they stay."

"Would you rather I stayed and read them to you? Last I checked, you preferred blissful ignorance on the subject of the male pooka reproductive organ." Lily threatened, North snorted in his effort not to laugh at their exchange. Bunnymund kept his replies simple, but Lily went in for detail. Her threat carried weight, Bunnymunds ears went back, then down. He took her threat seriously, and knew she'd do it.

"Fine, but don't damage them." Bunnymund finally said and handed back the books. Lily grinned triumphantly and got a leather satchel to put the books in.

"Is shameless how you flirt." North said loudly enough to be heard by Lily and Bunnymund. Lily started laughing, but Bunnymund glared at North reproachfully, and with a touch of betrayal. "Now, we go." North said, chuckling as Bunnymund slunk away, he'd be in a fine dismal mood for days, then he'd see why North had made fun of his and Lily's arguing, to him it would have sounded like they were an old married couple. But for now, a good sulk and time away from his house guest was what he wanted to do.


	8. Coming Home

Lily enjoyed her visit to North's workshop. For the most part. It was loud, bright and cheery, even on the off season. After days of begging and pleading, North finally took Lily to see her family, especially Chrissy. Lily sat in North's sleigh, watching as he only hitched up two reindeer.

"Are you sure there isn't anything I can do to help, North?" Lily called, all week long, North had refused to let Lily do anything that barely met the meaning of the word work. Resulting in a rather bored and guilty feeling, Lily. "It's no trouble." she added, then gave up, North was finished with his task and was settling into the drivers seat.

"Now, this is how it works. We fly out to cruising altitude, then I throw snow globe. We go through portal and come out right above little girl's house." North said cheerfully, Lily nodded and clenched the lap robe to keep her paws from shaking. North flicked the reins and the reindeer were off, the two reindeer easily pulling the empty and therefore lighter, sleigh into the upper atmosphere. Lily gasped, only to have her breath taken away by the sight of the Northern Lights, and the wind. Lily stared, wonder struck. This was something she had hoped to see as a child, that and Santa's workshop. North threw the snow globe and a portal opened. The reindeer needed no guidance, as they were already flying into the vortex before North could pick up the reins again. It was past midnight, in Lily's old home town, this was expected, no guardian, but Jack Frost could go around in day light. Children would mob them and they'd be at the mercy of those children. Best to avoid their most avid fans.

The sleigh touched down gently on Lily's sister's house and North helped her out of the sleigh. He led her to the chimney and both went down it rather quickly. Lily had no time to become a nervous wreck, even though she had seen the strings of Christmas light half ripped down, and decorations almost buried in the snow. What worried her most, was the Christmas tree, stripped bare and hacked to pieces, on the curb for pick up. It was only a week after Christmas and Chrissy birthday as well. Lily and North came into Chrissy's bedroom. All her home made decorations had been ripped down, little rings of construction paper and pop corn garland were shoved into a trash bag. What startled even North was the crayon on a poster board, declaring Chrissy's hate for Christmas.

"Oh no. North, what happened? Chrissy loves the holidays. Especially Christmas. She was born on Christmas Eve." Lily whispered, a paw to her mouth in saddened horror. North looked sad as well.

"She does not believe in me any longer." North said, bowing his head.

"What, no! She loves you! I had to haul her little butt to seven different stores and malls, just so she could sit on all those Store Santa's laps and tell them why they weren't the real Santa. She was banned from five of those stores Christmas villages. There is no way she'd ever stop believing." Lily said, going to the little bed on the other side of the room. "Chrissy, Chrissy! Wake up!" Lily hissed, trying to wake the little girl by shaking her gently. Her hand went right through Chrissy's leg. Lily gave North a horrified look.

"She does not believe in you either." North said in a gruff voice. "I would guess that the whole family is no longer believing."

"I want to go back to the Warren, North. Now, please." Lily said in a watery voice. North nodded and they left Chrissy's room.

Bunnymund was surprised to see the sleigh appear in his Warren, and only watched when Lily actually hopped as fast, and as coordinated, as she could, to get into the upper alcoves and away from the others. Bunnymund looked at North, confused.

"It is long story." North said with a soul weary sigh. He told Bunnymund all that had happened during Lily's visit at the Pole and what had happened with her niece. Bunnymund waited for a few hours after North had left, to try to talk to Lily. She refused to speak about what had happened.

"Look, you're gonna have to go over this sooner or later."

"Yeah, I know. But I would prefer later. Besides, what do you know about being forgotten and thrown to the wayside by your own family?" Lily demanded, Bunnymund glared at her.

"More than you'd know, if you actually asked about anything other than how you can get back to something you can't ever have again. I gave my life and became a Guardian for it. What did you do to deserve all this?" Bunnymund snapped back, temper finally frayed through with how selfish Lily had been up to that point.

"I saw you." Lily growled and closed her door on Bunnymund's face. Bunnymund growled and went back down to the painting meadow.

* * *

So, a heart breaker. Lily was severely disappointed and hurt by her family seeming to have forgotten her.

As it stands, I'm only getting a few reviews, I'm not in to mining for adoration, but I don't want to continue a story if it's not liked by more than one or two people. I won't stop writing, but it may just turn into a series of vignettes. I already have a plan for Lily finally being believed in by her family, seventeen years into the future, when Chrissy is about to get engaged. I just want some more positive feed back. Nothing that panders to an ego, just a good review or positive cronstructive criticism. I already have one great reviewer. I want to know just how many people are actually reading and not just skipping through looking for things to report. I've had that happen before. Anyway, please don't hesitate to fire off a review.


	9. Old Familiar Faces

It was days before Lily and Bunnymund spoke to each other for more than a few terse sentences. They had been glaring and ignoring each other as a way to avoid talking to one another. But their natural, animal, instinct drove them together. Both of them being rabbits, or as close as a Pooka can get, they were drawn to each other simply because they instinctually craved company. It was dinner time, by Lilys' idea, and she had put together a basket of salad and free form vegetables. She had up until lately, tried to avoid conflict and had thought that making Bunnymund dinner was a good way to clear the air between them. She was almost as good as Bunnymund was at walking now, she noticed as she headed down to the rivers where Bunnymund had set up a painter's shed.

He had thrown himself into making and painting Easter eggs to make up for the year before, when Easter had almost been lost. So far, he had surpassed his usual yearly goals and was closing in on a new personal record. Lily picked up an egg and looked at it. The stripes that were supposed to be horizontal were tilted upwards, elongating them and giving the egg the illusion of being larger. Lily carried the egg and the dinner basket over to the table that Bunnymund was sitting at, slumping explained his position better.

"Are you trying new designs, or are you trying to work yourself into a mental breakdown?" Lily asked, setting the egg in front of Bunnymund. He didn't even look at it before picking it up and repainting it in polka dots. Lily set the basket down and snatched Bunnymund's paint brushes. It took him a moment to realize what had happened. "Okay, here's how it is. I'm sorry for being a pain in the butt and not being very sympathetic to you and the others. I had my reasons and I'm over them now. But, if you keep up this work schedule, I'm going to be an even bigger pain, trying to keep you from working yourself to death. Now, eat something and take a break for a while. Catch up on your sleep. Just stop doing everything for a while." Lily said as she unpacked the salad and set it in front of Bunnymund. The bottle of vinaigrette stumped him for a moment.

"What's this?" Bunnymund said hoarsely, he had worn out his voice cursing, swearing and generally yelling and shouting at the eggs or just when he made a wrong stroke with his paint brush.

"It's salad dressing. An orange flavoured vinaigrette that Toothiana dropped off when I first came here. Have some of this to drink. It's lemon and honey." Lily said, handing Bunnymund a cup of hot tea. "It'll help your throat, and you won't rasp when you talk." she explained, she dipped a piece of broccoli into a sour cream dip, much to Bunnymund's interest.

"How can you eat all this?" Bunnymund asked.

"I read all those old medical texts. So long as it isn't straight protein, like meat, we can eat anything. We may be able to even eat fish, but I never liked fish, so don't count on it." Lily said with a grin at Bunnymund as he shuddered at the thought of eating any kind of meat. They ate the rest of their meal in silence. Lily insisted on following Bunnymund up to his personal room and watched him settle down to sleep.

"You plan on standing there all day?" Bunnymund grumbled.

"No. Just until you fall asleep." Lily said with a grin from the door way.

"Whatever. Just close the door when you leave." Bunnymund said, yawned and rolled over. He was asleep in moments. Lily couldn't help herself, she giggled at the sight of the sleeping rabbit. He was an adorable bunny when he was sleeping.

Lily puttered around for a few days, occasionally checking in on Bunnymund, to make sure he was still sleeping and eating regularly. He was dead set on making this Easter better than any other, just to make up for last year. He was working himself into quite a state and Lily thought he was close to mental and nervous breakdowns. His mentor, Pandora the former Guardian of Hope, had shown up to check on her replacement. She had hand picked him from among hundreds of his own kind and other applicants. Old Pandora had smiled at Lily and sat down with her to chat. Bunnymund had taken one look at Pandora, made a sound akin to a squawk, hugged her at her demand, and disappeared. That had been hours before the old woman had left. Pandora had also left a couple of small, ornate boxes.

The old crone now worked part time as a Guardian artist. She had crafted the magic for Jack Frost's shepherds crook, a few hundred years before he had even been born mortal. Her magical artifacts were in the hands of dozens of Representatives, Familiars, and lesser attaches. Bunnymunds own brushes were regularly replaced by Pandora, and North's globes wouldn't work without the proper magical formula from Pandora. The only Guardians and others who didn't need anything from Pandora and her team, were Toothiana and Sandman. Toothiana crafted her own things and Sandman could enchant ordinary sand if he needed. Mother Nature was gifted enough to make her own things and change her own Representatives, but preferred to have them run by the experts in each regard.

The little boxes contained tiny string and stick dolls called worry people. Pandora had instructed Lily to put the dark blue and grey set under Bunnymunds pillow and let them do their work. The green and gold set were for Lily herself, but she thought she wouldn't need them. Pandora had also given Lily a set of bracelets, each set with a four leaf clover and a lucky penny. They were small honey coloured cuffs, no more than four inches at their widest and sat on her wrists like they had always been there. They matched with the light brown and tan of Lily's fur and stood out on the white fur of her stomach. Pandora had commented on the lack of ornament Lily hadn't gotten around to getting herself. As they chatted, Pandora would go between talking to Lily and measuring her neck, waist head, feet, and the tiny space between her ears. Lily was beginning to worry that she was being fitted for a harness and that she was going to be hitched to a wagon for the old woman. Lily was scared of the day when Pandora would return with her 'gifts'

* * *

So, a few days late due to the holidays. As always reviews are welcome, provided they are not inflammatory or derogative. Merry Christmas.


	10. A Party Invitation

Lily and Bunnymund sat at their dinner picnic table, surrounded by a swarm of eggs. Most of them were painted, but Easter was only a few weeks away and Bunnymund was closing in on the home stretch. He had made mountains of chocolates and several vast swarms, much larger than the one surrounding them, that would be distributed with the help of Lily and the other guardians. It would be the only time in his life that the Warren would be open to others who were not Pooka, or Lily.

Bunnymund wasn't actually surrounded, the eggs had followed Lily out from the kitchen, a small prep area that she had commandeered and used for making their meals. She had recently introduced tofu into their meals, and Bunnymund found it interesting, how many ways it could be prepared before being put into a dish. The eggs sat on their round little bottoms and waited. Bunnymund guessed that Lily had been reading to them from his old books again. The eggs seemed to enjoy being spoken to and having Lily read to them was much more interesting than being told what their paint job was going to look like. So it had come about that Bunnymund had pressed Lily into bringing some books out of the library and sitting with the painted eggs so that she could read to them and let the unpainted eggs wait for their turn. Even the stone guardian eggs would slowly shift in their places to listen unobtrusively. This had been going on long enough, that Lily had finally started digging up old fables and Pooka legends to tell the eggs. Bunnymund found the old stories interesting too, and would often sit and listen instead of painting for a little while.

As February closed in, Bunnymund and Lily were surprised by Jack Frost showing up in the Warren, on a mission from North. Jack and Lily had mended their first impressions and were now good friends. Bunnymund termed it partners in crime and Toothiana thought it was a little unnerving that they got along so well. Point of fact, Jack and Lily were a pair of practical jokers. Now that Jack had some structure in his life as a Guardian, he had gotten into reading most of North's library, and found that expanding his mental horizons fed his imagination. Of course, his favourite victim was Bunnymund, when he was out and about, never in the Warren. Not after Lily sat him down to a cold, vegetarian meal and had him help paint eggs. Effectively keeping him from pulling his pranks and keeping him away from all the Easter chocolate. Jack sat down next to Bunnymund and watched for a moment as the eggs were enthralled and the stone guardians turned to him but didn't move from their spots.

"So, you don't find it a little creepy, that all those eggs, are watching you and so are the golems?" Jack asked, tilting his head a little to convey his confusion and level of creeped out.

"I don't mind at all, Jack. I used to go to the library and read to human children on the weekends. This isn't all that different. Actually, the eggs are better behaved and quiet. Not rambunctious or restless like real children." Lily said, looking up from her book at last. "Course, I only did it for a couple hours, not all day." she added dryly, giving Bunnymund a cool look. He huffed and scooped up an unpainted egg to paint it, before eating more of his lunch.

"Okay. Anyway, North sent me to tell you about the Groundhog day party he's holding the night of Groundhog Day." Jack said with a shake of his head. He propped his staff against the table and sat down. "North wants to know if both of you are coming."

"I'm busy with Easter, mate." Bunnymund said, setting down a brightly painted egg, only to pick up another, which Lily took from him and shoved his lunch closer. "And making sure I'm not working myself into the ground." he added, rolling his eyes.

"We will both be there. The eggs can take care of themselves for one evening." Lily said with a grin at Jack, when Bunnymund shot her a look of surprise. "You could use some time out of the Warren and away from your responsibilities. North takes a break every now and again, why can't you?"

"Easter is a month and a half away, and you've already put in enough work for two years. A short break won't undo all this." Jack chimed in brightly. "Besides, everyone knows that you and the Ground hog have history." he added slyly. Lily grinned at this, North had told her about the Ground hog's jealousy at not being the only Western Holiday animal mascot once Bunnymund had been named to the Guardian of Hope position and took on Easter as well. Bunnymund looked from Jack to Lily, taking in their grins at the thought of a show down between him and the Ground hog. Bunnymund sighed in defeat.

"Fine, we'll go. But only for a few hours. I need to get as much done as possible. I still have to plan out routes too." Bunnymund said with a firm look at the other two. They grinned even more and left him to go over why he had let them talk him into going to a party.

* * *

An update, finally. I finally got to watch the Lorax, and am both proud and ashamed to say that I am now a Onceler fangirl.


	11. Crazy old Familiar Face

Bunnymund tugged at the collar and tie Lily had made him wear, since Jack had returned and said the party was now a black tie affair. Since neither Lily nor Bunnymund had any clothes beyond their accessories, this was a bit of a challenge. Lily had raided the old storage tunnels and came out with old silk robes in earth tones and some old goggles that she cajoled Bunnymund into wearing for an afternoon. Lily wished she had a camera for that particular day. After much searching and fits of frustration, Lily had finally found usable, workable, black silk and white linen. Apparently the Pookas were very industrious and spun most of their own fabrics. Where they got the silk worms however, that would remain a mystery, as there was no log or store room ledger with such things recorded. The tie had been the easy thing to design and make, but Lily puzzled for days over what to make herself for the party. She finally decided on a little pillbox hat with a small spray of daises, and a tulip print birdcage veil. She still felt very underdressed, but neither of them could go and walk into a store and get something tailored to them. Then Pandora turned up a few hours before the party. Lily almost had a nervous breakdown when she turned around from her mirror, only to see the shrivelled old woman grinning at her. She barely withheld a shriek of surprise as it was.

"So, when are you two going to get moving? The Warren ain't getting any emptier." Pandora asked cryptically enough to stump Lily for a moment.

"We were going to be leaving here in an hour or two." Lily said, Pandora looked at her, a look nearly as cryptic, but managed to convey scorn and bemusement at Lily's expense. Lily wondered about that as she smoothed her fur carefully.

"You aren't going like that are you?" Pandora asked suddenly, as she walked around looking at Lily from all angles. "Didn't you find anything in the store rooms?"

"Nothing that would last the next five minutes, let alone an entire evening." Lily said with a shrug. "Bunnymund isn't going to be dressed in much more, so I won't be alone in being underdressed." she explained with a shrug.

"Do you know what many retired Guardians become?" Pandora asked quietly.

"No, what?" Lily asked, not really listening.

"God parents." Pandora said simply.

"God parents?" Lily asked turning to look at the old woman curiously.

"Fairy god parents. I had a stint as one for a while after I retired. It was surprisingly easy. A pair of glass shoes and a dress, a pumpkin worked into a carriage, nothing hard. Got made into one of the most famous stories ever. Even had a few dozen movies made too." Pandora said proudly, Lily stared at the crazy old woman for a minute.

"You were responsible for Cinderella? What about Snow White and Sleeping Beauty?" Lily asked in disbelief. Pandora ignored Lily's questions and waved her walking stick, making Lily jump back to avoid being struck by the batty old woman. A fountain of gold sparks erupted from the staff and encased Lily for a few moments. After they sparks faded, Lily stood dressed in a Chinese styled dress. It was red with embroidered gold rabbits cavorting along the length of it, and the slits in the sides made for easy movement for her legs. The black wraps around her feet puzzled her until she realized that it was how Bunnymund wrapped his feet with leather straps.. Her hat was replaced with a delicate gold crown, decorated with little flowers.

"The Chinese worship rabbits. Ask about the old Moon Maiden legend and how the Rabbit was helpful. He's even a figure in the Chinese zodiac." Pandora said with a grin, as Lily turned around in front of the mirror to get a good look at the dress. "A pity you haven't got actual hair to dress up, but I did what I could. I'll go see to Aster now."

"Aster?" Lily asked blankly.

"He didn't even tell you his name? Well, his middle name. He won't tell anyone what the E stands for." Pandora said and left the room as Lily figured out most of Bunnymund's name. Pandora, the crazy as a fox old woman, grinned to herself as she headed down to Bunnymund's personal burrow. Bunnymund wasn't really surprised to see Pandora and suffered in silence as she transformed his outfit into something a little more formal. A black hat, which he promptly tossed, a glossy, moss green, silk jacket edged with dark gold at the sleeves and hem, and a loose fitting pair of slacks that tied off at his ankles. His leather wraps were now black, and his bracers were hidden by the long green sleeves. His outfit had no embroidery beyond decorative vines in leaf along his cuffs and knee length hem. It wasn't an objectionable get up, although to one accustomed to running about in only his fur and bracers, this was confining. Pandora slapped the little hat back on his head and no matter how hard he pulled on it, the hat wouldn't come away from his head. Pandora only cackled at him, when he gave her a pleading look. He assumed the position of one defeated by life, when she vanished in a puff of silver dust, and went out to meet Lily.

The effect clothing has on one's perception of other people was made startlingly clear to both Lily and Bunnymund. They stared at each other for a moment, long enough to take in the other's full appearance. The moment was ruined when Lily snickered at the hat on Bunnymund's head. She had no trouble removing it.

"That crazy old woman was here again." Lily said with another chuckle, Bunnymund rolled his eyes and tried to move comfortably in his new clothes.

"I feel like a puppet in this outfit." Bunnymund growled.

"No, just eye and arm candy." Lily said, failing to maintain a serious expression, and breaking out in giggles. "I'm sorry, really. It's just, that actually looks pretty good on you. Where's your grenade belt?" she asked, not seeing any tell tale lumps under Bunnymunds jacket.

"It's staying here tonight. I have my boomerangs." Bunnymund said, hoping that Lily had gotten all the laughs out by now. "Let's get going. The sooner we get there, the sooner we leave." he grumbled, Lily snorted inelegantly at his cynicism.

"Well, at least we aren't underdressed now. Even if I did put a lot of effort into the hat and your tie." Lily said mournfully.

"You aren't going to make me wear it for Easter, are you?" Bunnymund asked as he tapped his foot for a portal that would take them directly to North's study at the Pole. Lily grinned at him as they went through the portal.

They arrived in the study, where it was quiet and Lily immediately turned to Bunnymund to check his clothes and make sure he was presentable. Then she smoothed her own dress, missing the slight, admiring look Bunnymund had to shake off, before opening the door and leading her to the great room where the party was in full swing.

* * *

Alright, they're at the party and Pandora has made another appearance. Special Thanks go to MissRaevelynn for intially creating the base character for Pandora.

Factoid: Pandora is from the Greek myth called Pandora's Box. She was gifted with a box that held all of Earth's misery and all things bad. The Box also contained Hope. Curious as anyone woulde be after being told to NOT open the Box, Pandora goes ahead and opens it. All those bad, horrible things escaped immediately. Through her fear and shame, Pandora still had the presence of mind to close the Box. Thus, she preserved Hope and kept it from becoming a warped twisted vile thing, like all the rest had become.

The Worry Dolls are a Guetamalan practice. Children are often involved in the making of them to help with the release of their worries and fears.

Read and Review please.


	12. Party with the Ground Hog

An hour into the party and Bunnymund was more than ready to leave. He had already been harangued by the Ground Hog, Toothiana and some other female Representatives had stared at him, then turned and started giggling like children when they caught him looking at them curiously. North was an even bigger mystery, he and Sandy were taking turns, keeping his mug of vodka and eggnog full and his stomach full of fruitcake soaked in rum. They were also encouraging Jack in his attempts to foment an _incident_ with the Ground Hog. Bunnymund had no reservations about going to town on the annoying rodent any day of the week, but he had standards, and he wouldn't be so rude as to cause a fight in the middle of the oversized rat's own party. For now, he would just have to bear the humiliation of being in the same room, and sip eggnog for another couple of hours, or until he could convince Lily to return to the Warren. His eyes lingered on her for a moment too long, North caught him staring and grinned conspirational, then tapped his nose, a sign of keeping Bunnymund's secret. Bunnymund shook his head and rolled his eyes at the sight of North, now laughing with the American version of Cupid. The Greek and Roman representatives resented the little androgynous baby look, but the kid pulled it off. Bunnymund snorted, the 'kid' was as old as North was and had repeatedly refused Guardianship.

Lily was dancing with another rep of the Seasons turnaround, Life, Death, and Renewal, were triplets, and Death was the only male among them. The boy had the look of a younger Pitch, but wasn't frightening, he represented the hibernation period at the end of Autumn and was in the same class that Jack had risen from. Lily and Death were laughing, she had tripped over her feet and had dragged him down with her. Bunnymund didn't realize he was glaring at the scene, until Pandora slapped his back, making him choke on his cake, and grinned at him wickedly.

"I thought you weren't going to show up." Bunnymund ground out around a lungful of cake.

"I got a report that there was going to be a brawl between you and the dirt pig." Pandora chuckled.

"Ground Hog. And I wouldn't be so rude as to go and bury him at a party where he is the guest of honour." Bunnymund said archly.

"Everyone else would stand in line to beat down that whistling egomaniac." Jack muttered darkly, he had just been greatly insulted by the Ground Hog. "He told me that _children_ didn't deserve to be Guardians. That they hadn't earned the right. Has he not met Cupid? That guy isn't a kid and he's turned down the position for centuries." Jack said loud enough to be heard by both Cupid and the Ground Hog.

"Not to mention the dirt pig was never even offered a post on the back up Guardian squad." Pandora all but shouted loudly. Bunnymund looked from her to Jack, getting a little frantic and realizing just what was going on around him.

Lily and Death had separated and she was headed over, a look of concern on her face, Pandora and Jack got along far too well for her mental well-being. She didn't manage to beat Ground Hog to the Guardians, current and former.

"Isss there sssomething you want to sssay to me, rabbit?" Grundy Muldoon, the Ground Hog's real name, something he was both very proud of and ashamed of. He shoved Lily aside in his haste to get to Bunnymund. She squeaked in surprise, a sound rabbits make in the natural world to signify fear, warning and sometimes, their own death. The sound had a strange effect on Bunnymund, his senses had been dulled by the vodka he had unwittingly drank a lot of. Bunnymund's eyes went wide at the sound of Lily squeaking, and his feet shot out in an amazing display of dexterity and a general disregard for the law of gravity. Grundy went flying into a floor to ceiling book case and Bunnymund was standing over him, subconsciously standing between him and Lily. Grundy tried to rush Bunnymund, only to get himself redirected into a wall, and then back into the book case when he tried to tackle the larger lagomorph. Bunnymund kept back and was swaying gently, thanks to the rum and vodka. He was barely remembering the principles of aikido, and was quickly going down the path to simply stomping on the rodent and calling it a night well spent. Grundy hauled himself up and prepared to run at Bunnymund again, until a long brown foot shot in front of his and he went sprawling at Bunnymund's feet. Lily stepped around the dazed rodent and stood next to Bunnymund. He huffed a short laugh and crouched down to be on eye level with Grundy.

"You may have gotten me to fight mate, but you won't get the pleasure of winning. Lil here, she got you good." Bunnymund taunted as Grundy's front teeth were pried out of the floor boards, without Grundy being attached to them.

"I didn't mean to break his teeth." Lily said after the Ground Hog had been taken to a guest room to have his teeth reattached by Toothiana, and to sober up a little. He had been hitting the eggnog a little too hard.

"The little egomaniac deserved everything he got." Bunnymund said, accepting another refill from Sandman. He gulped it down quickly.

"Do you know what vodka does to rabbits?" Lily asked, refusing a mug from Sandman, she was drinking sparkling cider.

"No, what?" Bunnymund asked blankly.

"I don't know either, but I guess we'll find out if you keep drinking like a fish." Lily said, grinning and sipping her cider.

"There's champagne in the cider." Bunnymund pointed out.

"I'm not drinking like it's my first day on shore leave." Lily said dryly, Pandora snorted inelegantly. "Besides, someone should remain sober besides Jack and Toothiana. Or at least a close second." Lily added sipping her cider again and finding it delicious. Bunnymund took one more refill from Sandman, before Lily chased him off with a narrow eyed look. Sandman grinned impishly and floated away. Pandora and Jack wandered off when they figured out that Bunnymund wasn't going to beat down any of the other guests. Lily sat with Bunnymund and tried to get him to slow down on the eggnog, but he was hooked, and North wasn't helpful in the least. He would swing by with a new mug, or send a yeti by with a pitcher to refill everyone's mugs. Lily gave up on stopping the flow of alcohol and simply waited till the rest of the guests had left before helping Bunnymund stumble to his guest room.

Lily found that helping Bunnymund meant nearly dragging a very happy, drunken, six foot tall, nearly two hundred and fifty pounds of muscular, rabbit, down several long halls and up a flight of stairs. This wasn't easy, especially since Bunnymund wanted to go back and sing for the guests who remained to help clean up. Lily had her hands full just trying to get to the stairs, getting up them was more difficult than she imagined. She had to keep from tripping herself and Bunnymund, and then keep him from falling down the stairs, tripping over his feet and keeping him from tripping over his own feet and hers. A yeti finally showed up and carried a now pouting Bunnymund to his room. Lily walked in to make sure he was actually in the bed and sleeping before she left. His hangover would be epic. Master of control indeed, Lily snorted to herself as Bunnymund fought with the blanket and finally settled down. Lily stood and went to leave.

"You're not going, are you?" Bunnymund asked plaintively, Lily sighed, clearly once the happy wore off, Bunnymund became childish. North was in for a long lecture about moderation in the morning, no matter if his head was trying to split itself open or not.

"I was just going to turn out the lights." Lily said softly. She turned down an old styled oil lamp and set it on the night stand next to the bed, then she put out the rest of the lamps before sitting down in the big armchair again, to wait for Bunnymund to fall asleep.

* * *

A new chapter now that my fascination with Brave has finally ebbed. This one is a two parter. the next part to the party's aftermath will be posted soon.

Fun Fact : Rabbits can not vomit.


	13. Obsessive Compulsive Behavior

Bunnymund rolled over and felt his head keep rolling without his body. If only Pooka physiology didn't resemble a rabbit's so much, he'd be in the lavatory worshipping the china idol. Bunnymund groaned and instantly regretted making a sound louder than a sigh. Lily jerked awake in the huge chair next to his bed.

"What are you doing in here?" Bunnymund asked weakly.

"I was only going to stay till you fell asleep, like you asked, but then I fell asleep too." Lily whispered, knowing about hangovers, she was young once too. "Do you need anything?"

"A shot though the skull would be nice." Bunnymund moaned, trying to burrow his head under his pillow. "A glass of milk and a free shot at North's skull would be more welcome. That old bleeder was feeding me rum cake and eggnog that was mostly vodka."

"Yeah, you had every chance to turn him and Sandy down, but you seemed to enjoy eating and drinking like a lush." Lily drawled dryly, Bunnymund glowered at her. "Also, I believe the Ground Hog has a new grudge against you. Seems you and I humiliated him last night. You knocked him around some and then I knocked his teeth out of his head. Purely accidental, but still." Lily left the room to get some breakfast for herself, and send a yeti up with North's hangover cure.

A few hours later, with Bunnymund nearly at a full recovery, they both left Santoff Clausen and went back to the Warren. Bunnymund moaned all the way to his private tunnel and had stripped off all the fine clothes Pandora had given him. Lily only found the little black and white tie she had made in a futile attempt at dressing up. She went to her little room and took a refreshing nap. When she woke, her dress and accessories were gone, leaving only her hat and bracelets. Lily shrugged, it wasn't like she and Bunnymund would need formal wear very often.

February slowly became March, and with the onset of the Easter season, Bunnymund became a lot more frantic, he may have put up a calm façade for the other Guardians sake, and he tried to do the same to Lily, but she kept catching him cursing and swearing at everything whenever something went wrong. Even if it was a two metre detour around a boulder in Colorado. Bunnymund pitched an epic fit when he realized he forgot to include Burgess on his route, three weeks before he needed it set in stone. Lily was having fun watching him try to sort the eggs into colour coordinated teams for easier distribution, but drew the line at his trying to get her into his obsessive compulsive sorting. He didn't have a category for light brown and white.

The Saturday night before Easter Sunday, the other Guardians showed up, with the exception of Toothiana, she'd help once most of the teeth for that night were picked up. As it was, Bunnymund was already half bald from the stress of trying to get this Easter done perfectly, and the way he was looking at Jack Frost was a little disturbing. Jack had promised to do his best and avoid pulling pranks as much as possible. Since Bunnymund was running the show, he had Jack and Lily team with Sandy and North. Toothiana already knew how to hide things for children to find, so Jack would equal out Sandy's non existent hiding skills, and Lily would keep North from leaving a massive pile of eggs in the front yard. All in all, that night went pretty smoothly, except that North was called back to the Pole to attend to an emergency, leaving Lily to hide eggs in a small town by herself. Bunnymund found her just before dawn and they were about to head back to the Warren when two little boys snuck out of their house and caught them standing in the yard.

"Oh, bugger." both Bunnymund and Lily muttered, as one boy ran inside and the other stood watching.

"Do something!" Lily hissed at Bunnymund, they could hear the other boy in the house screaming at the top og his lungs about the Easter bunnies.

"You've got a couple of believers now." Bunnymund said with a smirk at Lily, she glowered at him, then gaped when the smaller child wilted to the ground.

"Let's go!" Bunnymund said, as Sandman floated overhead and followed them through the tunnel Bunnymund tapped for.

Back in the Warren, Bunnymund had slumped over the picnic table with Jack, Sandman and Toothiana. North had yet to return from his emergency. Lily was stretched out on the grass looking up at Toothiana.

"All I could do was freeze, when those little boys came out of their home. Bunnymund had to drag me down the tunnel. After I told him to do something. Thankfully, Sandy was there to put the one kid to sleep." Lily said, with a smile at Sandman, he gave her a thumbs up in reply. Jack snored, and the table was quickly vacated, he didn't have a lot of control over his powers when he was asleep. North finally returned and helped with removing Jack to a quiet room to sleep in.

"So, was success, yes?" North asked after coming back from delivering Jack to a different room.

"I'm still a six foot rabbit, aren't I" Bunnymund asked sarcastically.

"I actually have some believers now. Although, they think I'm an Easter bunny too." Lily said, rolling to lay mostly on her back. "I could do with a week of sleep after this."

"Bunnymund does that anyway. He goes into a deep sleep for a couple weeks. We've tried to tell him that cuts into time he could use for getting a head start on next Easter, so he isn't so rushed, but he keeps on with the hibernation period." Toothiana said, shrugging delicately at the uselessness of trying to get Bunnymund to stay awake.

"There's a reason I go to ground for a couple of weeks. I'm not about to tell anyone why. Just keep out of it. It's my business." Bunnymund grumbled, as North and Sandman shared a look.

They both knew what it was, but Toothiana and Lily wouldn't be told for a long time. Jack would never be told, for reasons only Bunnymund knew. Lily knew it was because he didn't want Jack making fun of him.

* * *

Another new chapter. Easter is included. Nothing special, a textbook operation, just like every year except the one Pitch ruined. Review please.


	14. Word of Warning to my Readers

A heads up to the readers of The Elements. From now on, please look for the story under the T to M rating in the drop tab. Things are heating up soon. But remember, Bunnymund and Lily are, on an instinctual level, animals. And animals always wind up doing what instinct tells them to. From eating, to running from predators. I do not in any way, condone violence of any nature. But, the only way to make the beginning work was to dial down free will, on both sides and go back to basic animal instinct. So again, please don't think I'm some kind of sadist, I'm only trying to set the stage for future encounters. Spring does come every year, after all.


	15. Worse comes to worse

After the other Guardians had left, Jack as well, once he woke up and pried open his door he had frozen shut while sleeping. Bunnymund and Lily were sitting in the large flower field watching the flowers droop into dormancy. Lily yawned and stretched out her back paws, then flopped boneless onto the grass. She laid there for a moment, then rolled onto her back, only to wriggle around on the grass for a few moments, then bounce to her feet and shake all over, then she bounded around spastically and looked a little demented.

"What is wrong with you?" Bunnymund asked with a grin, as Lily shook again.

"I itch all over, and it feels like my fur wants to crawl off my bones." Lily complained, rolling in the grass again.

"Oh, I know what it is." Bunnymund said with a chuckle. "I got over it years ago."

"What is it?" Lily demanded, Bunnymund just kept laughing. "I will land on you."

"It's March Hare Madness. It affects even Pookas' and rabbits. You'll be crazy for a while. Keep away from the rivers, I've been multicolour before because of not watching where I was going when the bounding happens." Bunnymund said, laughing, Lily glowered, then shook and had a disagreement with gravity for a few moments, Bunnymund only laughed harder and fell onto his side, holding his ribs. "That will happen every year, until you manage to expend energy faster than it can build. Running and jumping on Easter and the weeks after will help."

"Really?" Lily asked hopefully.

"Not as much as you'd think. It's also breeding season for our animal counterparts." Bunnymund pointed out.

"What happens to them, happens to us, doesn't it?" Lily asked, dread rising in the pit of her stomach. Bunnymund shrugged and began to walk away. "Does it?" Lily called after him, he didn't answer, just kept heading for his tunnel, the only one he kept a lock on, and a months' worth of food stores. It would be the first time in centuries, that he would have to lock himself in.

Lily had the run of the Warren, after a long argument with Bunnymund over him locking himself in a tunnel. She at least convinced him to let her drop a basket of fresh food off every day. None of the Guardians had been in contact, and Lily found herself digging through more and more of the old medical books in the library. She came across a few that listed the mating habits, rituals, and conditions inherent to Pooka reproduction. Single bucks and does were capable of mating with several others, while mated Pookas' would remain faithful. Lily thought this wasn't possible, not with the birth rate chart the author had included. A village could expand as much as fifty percent after a successful season, then it would decrease within months as smaller, unhealthy kittens perished, leaving only the strongest kits. Lily picked up another book and leafed through it till she found the section on infant health and birth issues. As advanced as the Pookas' were, even they were unable to cure sudden infant death syndrome, and typical complications with underdeveloped infants. Lily then noticed the word 'litter' Apparently, females could safely carry and give birth to up to four babies, anymore and it was a strain on the infant, not the mother. Lily huffed and put the books away. The dead race of Pookas' had they not carefully monitored their own reproduction, could have easily crowded out early humans and became the dominant species on Earth.

Nearly a month had passed and Bunnymund was getting low on supplies. The fresh food wouldn't last a day and was only supplemental to all his dried food. Bunnymund groaned, he'd have to leave his cave, and face Lily. He wasn't sure he could control himself around a viable female. Her scent had permeated every inch of the Warren, long before March had even begun. He had noticed her scent and the increase in his own energy weeks before even Easter. Lily had just put it down to him being obsessive compulsive. But the more he worked, the less he thought about the female standing next to him, or in front of him, with her back to him, and her scent changing to that of a fertile female ready to mate. Bunnymund groaned, his head said stay in locked in the tunnel. His body was demanding he drag the female into the tunnel. Lily knocked on the door and Bunnymund froze in a panic. She knocked again, more insistent and harder.

"What?!" Bunnymund growled, and yanked open the door to glare at Lily, not noticing the lock he had just broken. Lily blinked in surprise and glanced at the lock.

"I brought you some fresh vegetables." Lily said, handing him the basket and a pitcher. "I made some lemon tea." she added and then watched in disgust when Bunnymund drank the whole pitcher of tea, then stepped back when he glowered at her, calculatingly.

Bunnymund took the basket and tossed it on the floor, ignoring Lily's look of insult and hurt. He then grabbed her and pulled her close, nuzzling his nose into her neck, and inhaling deeply, her scent was light, notes of cinnamon, wild flowers, and pepper, the scent of pepper and how strong it was, was indicative of her fertility. Lily had frozen the moment Bunnymund had grabbed her. She was close to having a panic attack when he jammed his nose into her neck, she began to relax when he loosened his grip on her. Her chin slid over his shoulder when he had grabbed her, and he looked at her. Lily couldn't think straight at this point, Bunnymund's own scent was a thick, heady, mix of deep woods, a touch of new paint, and oddly enough the scent of fresh cut hay. Lily hadn't read anything of what scent exchange meant, and she had just left hers on Bunnymunds' shoulder. Bunnymund pulled Lily into a tight hug and let his chin rest on her head, she was too short for him to lean on her shoulder. Lily relaxed in his hold, and was leaning into his chest. Bunnymund felt his natural instincts begin to rise, and he shoved Lily away, sending her to the floor in his haste. Her squawk made him turn to look and all he could remember at that point was the sight of a female Pooka presenting herself to him.

Lily felt her body hit the ground, and she let out a cry of pain, rabbits were rather delicate. She pulled herself to all fours when she felt paws on her hips, rubbing certain pressure points, and a guttural growl emanating from behind her. Bunnymund's male scent rose, blocking out any other scent in the tunnel. Lily felt warm so suddenly, that she briefly wondered about taking her fur coat off. The paws on her hips slid to the crook and take a firm hold. A sudden, sharp pain in her lower region made her try to pull away, but he wouldn't let her go. The pain ebbed as a sense of fullness took it's place, then pleasure as Bunnymund withdrew and thrust in again and again. Everything became a blur of intensity and pleaure after the first initial pain.

Bunnymund woke up and slowly became aware of the soft, warm, body next to him in his bed in the locked tunnel. Then he remembered that the tunnel wasn't locked, he'd broken it and had seen Lily. Everything came back to him then, with the force of a freight train. Bunnymund groaned at the memories. He'd been lost in the natural, long suppressed and ignored, urges. Those had been rendered moot with the destruction of his entire race. Then MiM had changed Lily into a Pooka and left her to stay with the only other Pooka on the planet.

Bunnymund groaned again, Lily was probably going to bite his throat out if she could catch him, and the four or five times he had used her to alleviate those urges, probably meant she wouldn't be able to catch him for a while. Bunnymund felt an unmitigated swell of pride at this thought. Lily rolled over, making Bunnymund freeze in panic, and she snuggled into his side, nuzzling her nose into his ribs, then she was still again. Bunnymund relaxed and let himself fall back asleep, purring idly as he did so.

* * *

What I had warned against has happened. Centuries of abstinence came back and bit Bunnymund on the rear. While he is able to control his higher functions, natural instinct stills rules with an iron paw. Even humans are subject to our basic instincts. I'm not condoning anything, this is just a reminder that after all is said and done, they are still animals in form and instinct. Besides, Lily is the Rep of Fertility. She's going to have a stronger draw than even natural Pookas' would.

Fun fact : Most rabbits and hares do purr after mating, though only the males.


	16. Nature takes it's Course

Lily woke up and stretched luxuriously. For once she wasn't bounding out of bed, with that hyperactive bouncing. She sat up and winced as stiff muscles announced themselves. She knew what the feeling meant and looked down, no large male Pooka, but his scent remained. Vague memories came back to her in the form of sounds and feelings. Deep growling, pain overridden by pleasure, a lot of it, then purring and the scent of Bunnymund. Lily picked up the pillow and inhaled deeply, her scent mingled with his on it. She didn't have to smell the sheet or blanket, the very air was filled with the scent of their mating in this very bed. She shivered as actual images began to fill in the blanks of her memories. Bunnymund was talented in this particular area, even though he'd been out of practice for centuries.

Lily sat on the bed, going through her memories, when Bunnymund slunk in slowly, trying to avoid eye contact, and attemping to look smaller than his six foot one frame.

"Good morning." Bunnymund said quietly, stopping at the foot of the bed, Lily only looked at him.

"What happened?" Lily asked, tilting her head to the side.

"We, uh, I…" Bunnymund began nervously, trying to keep out of arms reach, when Lily stood up.

"No, what happened to me? Why couldn't I remember anything till I woke up?" Lily asked, cracking her back with a shrug and wincing. "I suppose the same happened to you?"

"I've been in the library, looking through the records for anything that might explain what happened and why I blacked out until I woke up too. But there's nothing." Bunnymund said in a rush and kept backing away from Lily. She was trying to get by him so she could go to the kitchen and get something to eat. He was trying to stay out of reach and unknowingly kept in her way.

"Will you move? Unless you have food, get out of the way!" Lily finally cried exasperatedly.

"You're not going to try and hurt me?" Bunnymund asked cautiously.

"Not that I could, but why would I?" Lily asked, looking at Bunnymund like he was deranged. He didn't answer, just let her pass and kept his guard up all the way to the kitchen, he was hungry and he didn't know how Lily made the salads. They ate in an uncomfortable silence, Bunnymund wasn't quite sure if Lily was in a state of shock or if he was comatose already and dreaming this.

"Alright, what is going on? You're acting like I'm going to explode or something." Lily asked with a sigh.

"We, uh, that is, I…" Bunnymund stammered.

"Drop it and leave it alone. I'm not angry, you're not about to die for doing what comes natural." Lily said bluntly.

"What do you mean?" Bunnymund asked blankly.

"I read the books too. In one of them, it states that scouts, who've been away for more than a few seasons, are more susceptible to giving in to their basic needs. Mating is one of the most basic needs anyone has. You've missed out on how many mating seasons?" Lily explained, as if reading from a text book.

"You're going to give me an out because of nature?" Bunnymund asked flabbergasted.

"No, I'm giving you one free pass. If you ever do that me again, without my permission, I will find a way to kill you. I'm capable of taking over Easter." Lily said darkly and glared at Bunnymund.

"You can't paint!" Bunnymund said with a snort.

"I can learn!" Lily shouted, he really had missed the context of her threat. Bunnymund realized after a moment, what Lily meant and tried to shrink again. He gave a weak grin, and left the subject alone. He knew, he'd pay if he pressed the issue. Lily wasn't usually so forgiving, she'd find a way to make him suffer.

He avoided Lily for the rest of the day, often checking on her when his conscience got the best of him. She had hauled an armload of books and went down to the water meadow, where he did most of his painting after the eggs had been for a dip dye. She was curled up under a weeping willow, that was violet in colour, and reading swiftly. Bunnymund kept his distance, then his eyes almost fell out of his skull when a sapling grew out of the ground right in front of Lily. The sapling grew till it was just past head height and transformed into a woody looking mature woman.

"Hello, I am Mother Nature." said the wooden woman grandly. Lily only stared for a moment. "It is customary to greet your employer." prompted Mother Nature.

"Hello, crazy lady. Are you friends with Pandora?" Lily asked sarcastically.

"We're on good terms. Now, I have been informed that you have finally performed your primary duty, and have come to say; Finally! Do you have any idea how long Old Man Winter has been holding back Spring for? We've all been waiting on you!" Mother Nature shouted exasperatedly.

"Waiting on me? I didn't even know what my job was! No one told me I'd have to endure near rape and humiliation, just to perform my function.!" Lily snapped, her temper frayed.

"MIM said he told you…" Mother Nature began uncertainly.

"He told me what I was going to represent. I had no idea that it would mean breaking the self control of someone who prized it above all else. I didn't know that I would drive someone to commit an unforgivable act, at least in the mind of any civilized person. But it's all part of the job." Lily finished her rant sarcastically. Mother Nature was at a loss for words for a moment.

"You said rape. What do you mean?" Mother Nature asked blankly.

"You can't seriously expect me to believe that you don't know what rape is." Lily deadpanned. "I said near rape. Neither of us could think as people at the time. We were reduced to our more basic animal mind set. We were lead by the nose quite literally. He by his and me by mine. The hormones and pheromones that we both put out overrode our ability to think and react to the situation. Had I been told that I should have seduced the Easter Bunny, this probably wouldn't be so mentally scarring. At least then, it wouldn't cause so much guilt and mental anguish." Lily said, leaning against the tree trunk and glaring at Mother Nature, who looked ready to melt into the ground.

"Regardless, you've performed your duties for the year, and did better than the last Fertility Representative. Who knew mice were bad examples for fertility?" Mother Nature said, completely dismissing the entire previous topic of discussion. Lily stared at her in disbelief, then rolled her eyes and slumped down on the ground.

"Did you have anything else to say, or was that all?" Lily asked, her paw over her eyes, trying to ward off a head ache.

"I brought you this. It's a potion that will keep you from breeding. Drink it whenever you and mister Bunnymund have relations. It won't interfere with the rest of your duties. But it will prevent the fruit of your labour coming to bear." Mother Nature said and with an unnecessary flourish, she held out a flask of what looked to be molasses.

"So it's a birth control?" Lily asked, turning the bottle over to look at it more closely.

"If you want to put it in layman's terms, yes. Don't you have any imagination?" Mother Nature asked, wilting slightly at Lily's glower.

"It went on the fritz when I found out that my job was to render sexual favours to the Easter Bunny." Lily muttered darkly.

"No! Not… You and he are uniquely suited to your jobs. You help bring in Spring, and he is the very meaning of Spring. He needs Spring to come, and what comes with Spring and Easter? Baby animals. Grown chickens, and rabbits, are not nearly as cute as their babies." Mother Nature explained.

"So, now I have to raise chickens and rabbits?" Lily demanded with growing horror.

"Well, not chickens. And only when you and mister Bunnymund are ready for baby Pookas." Mother Nature said, her leafy hair drooping at a renewed glare from Lily.

"It's really not your concern, should Bunnymund and I decide to start a family. How long will this potion last?" Lily asked archly.

"I brought the recipe so you could brew it yourself." Mother Nature said and held out a sheet of birch bark with writing on it.

"Thank you. How often will this happen?" Lily asked blandly.

"Every Spring. It's best to get it done before Easter, to ensure that there are baby animals on the way sooner, rather than later." Mother Nature said, and smiled. "Everyone loves little baby animals." she added before turning into a tree and disappearing. Lily stared at the spot for a moment, then went to find Bunnymund.

* * *

A twofer, aren't my readers lucky? This is to sooth the pain of the last chapter. Bunnymund and Lily discuss the situation a little and Mother Nature finally makes an appearance. Now we now who to blame.

Fun fact : Rabbits will harvest grass and other food and dry them in a particular tunnel, so they can have green food during the winter months when there is no fresh growth.

Also, they will dig through shallow snow to reach freeze dried grass and harvest that. Their harvesting often looks as though they have been rolling in the snow and generally disagreeing with it. At least that is what it looks like along the cedar hedge where a small warren has moved in beside my house.


	17. Rivers and Grudges run deep

Bunnymund just sat and stared at Lily for a few moments, assimilating the information she had just given him, courtesy of Mother Nature. He leaned back on his haunches and thought, it looked painful to Lily's private amusement.

"So, neither of us are at fault for…all of this?" Bunnymund asked, a little confused and angry. "Mother Nature and MIM knew what would happen?"

"She said he did and that he was supposed to tell me what my job was. I never thought that Mother Nature of all people would be an air headed, living through her daughter, denying her age, bubble head." Lily said with a groan. "I have to work for this woman."

"This is the last time MIM will ever get away with withholding information." Bunnymund growled darkly. "First Jack and his memories, now you and this whole mess." He got up and stomped away to where he trained on a daily basis.

Lily had taken to watching him every now and again, admiring how a rabbit paw could catch a boomerang that required actual thumbs to catch. She would never directly admit to finding Bunnymund attractive, her mind was still human after all, and he was a six foot tall rabbit. Bunnymund threw all his anger and pent up rage into his training, turning his tai chi into judo, or pit fighting with how hard he was going at it.

Lily watched for a few minutes, she also felt the need to destroy something and a lot of the things in the Warren were more useful than she was at the moment. Knowing that they had been deliberately misinformed and lead around was galling at best. Knowing that they had also been set up to fail as civilized people was especially outrageous. Lily and Bunnymund wouldn't see much of each other for the next few days, as both were busy blowing off steam in their own ways.

It took a while, but eventually the other Guardians noticed that Bunnymund wasn't attending the required meetings that North had instituted after the battle with Pitch. North tracked down Bunnymund and finally got the whole explanation from him.

Bunnymund was flabbergasted to find out that everyone had assumed that he and Lily were an item since the Ground Hog's Day party. He was floored when it turned out that it was Toothiana who had spread the rumour. Even if it was a misunderstanding, Bunnymund felt the need to set the record straight.

"We ain't a couple, North. She stayed in the room 'cause I was sloshed thanks to your open bottle policy. She was sleeping in the chair next to me." Bunnymund explained, North only grinned and patted his shoulder.

"Is too late. Everyone believes now that you and Lily are together. Makes it easy not to tell about Mother Nature and MIM not being on same page." North said with a shrug.

"Not on the same page?! North, she let me off the hook for rape! How is that not on the same page? Nature and MIM weren't even in the same library!" Bunnymund shouted.

"Because men and women think differently. Whatever Mother Nature told MIM, she probably thought he understood what she was saying. Men miss the sub context. Nuance and tonal inflection pass over even MIM's head when it comes from a woman." Lily said as she walked through the confectionary, also known as the kitchen. "Afternoon, North, how have things been at the Pole?"

"Good, very good. Aside from the… unpleasantness with Mother Nature, how has girl bunny been?" North asked, standing up to hug Lily.

"Unpleasantness, right." Bunnymund grumbled.

"We've both seen better times, but haven't had any complaints." Lily said, with a mirthless smirk. North chuckled uncomfortably and stepped back.

"You both will come to Pole. Have a vacation!" North said, as if that was a cure all.

"You're always trying to get us to visit you. Isn't Jack enough? Him, Tooth, and Sandy are always there. Why do you want us there so badly?" Bunnymund asked, rolling his eyes as North managed a convincing pout. "Sorry, but we've got to figure out what else Lily has to do for her job. Mother Nature wasn't very informative." he growled, and cast a quick glance at Lily, she had started to prepare their dinner. She hadn't paused in what she was doing, but had an ear turned in their direction, discreetly listening in.

North left after the meal. He had joined them and found Lily's cooking to be rather good, but no meat meant North didn't eat enough to be really full. Bunnymund and Lily were cleaning up the little area together.

They had worked out a system and could now work in perfect tandem. Neither had to look at the other when a dish was passed from the sink to the drain tray to be dried. Bunnymund had the longer reach, so he was often given the task of drying and putting away, while Lily washed the dishes.

They worked in silence, a quiet that weighed on Bunnymund. He felt that they needed to discuss what had happened and Lily absolutely refused to even speak to him if he brought it up. He took a deep breath, maybe a slightly different approach was called.

"When you're ready to actually talk about what happened, you'll tell me, won't you?" Bunnymund asked softly, Lily looked at him sharply, and considered what he said.

"It'll be a long wait. I still haven't come to terms with it, and I'm only going by the text book explanation. I'm not ready to face the mental or emotional stress talking will bring." Lily said quietly, looking at the large bowl in her hands.

"Like I said, when you're ready." Bunnymund said again. Lily looked up at him and shook her head.

"Sure. Don't hold your breath or anything. I'm a remarkably private person when I want to be." Lily said with a wry grimace, and left the kitchen. Bunnymund finished cleaning up and went to the water meadow to relax. When she was ready, Lily would find him.

* * *

There it is. As we can see, Lily is going through several stages of acceptance, she just hasn't reached the stage where she is ready to talk. She will, and Bunnymund will regret telling her that 'anytime she was ready.'

Fun fact : Rabbit teeth grow continuously, so they must gnaw to keep their teeth from growing too long and impairing the ability to eat. Rabbits will gnaw on just about anything, wooden stairs, table and chair legs, toenails if you walk around barefoot and the rabbit is loose. Pretty much anything they deem hard enough to gnaw on.


End file.
